Love is the kill, your heart's still wild

“So you’ve come to ambush me then, is it?” Amelia sulked, staring at the gun pointed right at her. She had her own weapon aimed ahead, but given her current state, she didn’t think that would make much of a difference.

“Sorry,” Sylvia apologized. “We don’t have to shoot each other, though! We can team up! Please, Amelia? After everything we went through last round, I really wouldn’t feel good about shooting you like this!”

Amelia stared at her, trying to determine the veracity of the other woman’s statement.

“…I do not wish that, either,” she admitted.

But neither girl lowered their gun.

Sylvia sighed. “You look pretty heated up,” she noted. “What happened? I don’t see any aphrodisiacs on your clothes.”

“Rose,” Amelia replied. “I shot her, and she tackled me. Took advantage of my transformation. Simple as that.”

Sylvia shook her head. She puffed up her cheeks. “You should have teamed up with her, then! That’s how you win these things.”

Amelia nodded. “I can certainly see the merit in that now,” she acknowledged. Perhaps she had gone about this the wrong way. “…I tend to work better on my own.”

Sylvia shook her head. “That won’t work here, though,” she pointed out. “Teammates, friends, that’s how we get through!” Her eyes were shining. “Don’tcha think?”

Amelia couldn’t really say anything to those bright eyes. She’d believed at the time that eliminating as many people as fast as possible was the most efficient way to get ahead. But now that she was a hair’s trigger away from orgasming, she couldn’t discount the possibility that she’d made a blunder.

I suppose I’m not well-equipped to competitions like this.

“…So you can lower your gun,” Sylvia said. “I’m not gonna shoot you.”

“Indeed.”

And yet… both guns remained raised.

It wasn’t that Amelia didn’t trust the other girl. She was just exercising appropriate caution.

“SPLAT!”

Amelia’s eyes widened like saucers and her gun slipped from her fingers. Something wet, warm, and sticky oozed through the back of her shirt, burning with lovely delight as it sank into her skin. She shivered as a wave of pleasure slammed into her like a truck, and the strength left her legs.

She bit down on her lip so hard it started to bleed, just to keep her orgasmic moan at bay. As the world spun around her and she hit the ground, she already knew that her game was over.

“Ooooohhh…!” An orgasm ripped through her as the faintest of moans slipped through her lips. The last thing she saw was the stunned expression on Sylvia’s face, and the look of panic in her eyes.

At least the other girl hadn’t stabbed her in the back. That was a cold comfort as Amelia was eliminated from the game. She reappeared a moment later on the stage, her cheeks flushed with pleasure and shame.

“What… did I… I lost, didn’t I?” She stumbled to her feet, adjusting her skewed glasses as she fumed. Looking around, she only saw the faces of Nick, Mary, Holly, and Dakota.

None of the other contestants were on the stage. She’d been the first one eliminated.

“Sorry to say,” Dakota said, barely able to contain her amused smirk. “But Rose sure did a number on you! And after that, well…”

She glanced at Amelia’s soaked blouse as the blonde scraped away fragments of what looked like a camouflage-colored water balloon. Her top was definitely ruined.

“…You might want to take your shirt off,” Dakota cackled. “Or it’s just going to keep soaking into your skin!”

Amelia glared at her, but didn’t hesitate. She began to unbutton her blouse, much to Nick’s shock, and Mary’s horror.

“Amelia?!” Nick sputtered as she tossed her ruined top aside, revealing her modest, bra-covered chest.

Dakota leered at them both, enjoying the show.

“You are my stepson, Nicholas,” Amelia said bluntly. “A bra is not a big deal.”

Nick certainly didn’t feel the same way. Mary was a little uncomfortable too, but she sympathized with the other woman.

“Who did something like that?” She fumed. “Who would just throw a- a water balloon at you like that, from behind?! What a dirty trick!”

Sylvia would soon find out the answer to that question.

“Darn it! I missed!” Grumbled a voice from behind the bushes. Sylvia quickly lined up her gun and held it on the bush.

“I see you over there!” She snapped, narrowing her eyes. “Come on out, or I’ll shoot!”

“Whoa, whoa, Sylvia, hold on!” Kim stepped out of the bushes, holding up her hands. “Don’t shoot! Weren’t you just talking about how we need to make alliances and team up with people?”

Sylvia stared incredulously at her. “…Yeah, and then you lobbed a water balloon filled with aphrodisiacs at Amelia’s back!”

Kim flushed. “Well… okay, yes, you’re not wrong there,” she admitted. “But-”

“But you were trying to hit me?” Sylvia interrupted her, narrowing her eyes. “Yeah, I heard that part too.”

“Well… technically I was trying to get both of you,” Kim clarified. “I thought that if I could hit you with the water balloon, you would be close enough to Amelia that some of the splashback would land on her, and then you’d both be cumming. But I only hit her.”

“Gee. That really makes me trust you,” Sylvia said sarcastically, rolling her eyes.

Kim blushed. “The only thing I found in the supply box was half a dozen of these water balloons,” she said, showing Sylvia the satchel of water balloons she had slung over her side. “Would you have really turned down the chance of eliminating two people at once?”

“Well… no, probably not,” Sylvia admitted.

“Exactly! It’s just the smart thing to do!” Kim asserted with a nod.

“…And shooting you would be, too,” Sylvia said, taking aim.

“Or we could work together! Like you said, a team-up. Three was too many, but with the two of us, we could go far!”

“Why would I trust someone who just splatted someone in the back?” Sylvia asked.

“You were going to trust Amelia,” Kim reminded her. “And she went after Rose for the same reason, didn’t she?”

“…Urk. True. Good point.” Sylvia couldn’t exactly be picky right now. She eyed Kim’s water balloons. They DID make for good weapons, especially considering Sylvia was light on bullets right now, too…

…

“…Okay, deal,” Sylvia relented, lowering her gun. “I’ll team up with you for now. But you walk in front! I’m not turning my back on you.”

Kim raised her hands. “Hey, sure, works for me,” she agreed. “I think that’s safer anyway. If you’re going to shoot me in the back, it’ll take more than a few bullets to have me cumming my brains out, after all, unlike with the balloons. This way, we can both feel safe.”

Sylvia still thought she might be getting played. In spite of arranging multiple challenges where duplicity and scheming could get you ahead, she was still woefully unprepared for actually taking part in one herself.

After all, she was just a regular girl now. The only challenge she’d participated in was one with just herself. She still had to account for the competitiveness.

“I would have thought you’d team up with someone like Augmented Synthetic Humanoid Assassin,” Sylvia commented. “After all, she’s pretty tough. You could probably go far with her on your side, and she really seems to like you, too.”

Kim shook her head. “I considered it,” she replied. “But I thought that was too risky of a gamble. Augmented Synthetic Humanoid Assassin might like me, but I don’t know if I can count on that. She might be so focused on winning that she doesn’t even care about that kind of thing. Can you really see her working in a team?”

Sylvia thought about it, and now that Kim pointed it out, the assassin was too much of a wild card to properly predict her behavior. If Kim extended a hand in friendship, the assassin might just shoot her anyway.

Heck- she might even see that as a bonding activity.

It was too hard to tell with her.

“Well… she’s probably capable of winning this whole thing on her own, I’ll give you that,” Sylvia agreed with a nod. “But I don’t think we need to be that worried!”

Kim looked at her, surprised.

“You don’t?”

Sylvia shook her head. “She’s just one person! And you’ve got your water balloons! I doubt that she’ll be able to do anything about that!”

Kim nodded. “Well, I hope you’re right,” she agreed. “In the meantime, we might want to look for more allies. Maybe tackle her with greater numbers.”

“Oh, you mean like Amelia? Maybe- OH WAIT.”

Kim winced back at Sylvia. “It was a spur-of-the-moment thing,” she replied. “I saw a chance and I took it! We need to move on from that, and try to eliminate as many people as we can.”

Then she caught sight of something, a suitcase shoved under a low bush.

“Hey! Look over here!” She leaned down to pick up the case.

“ZIP!”

…And as she did, a bullet whizzed over her head and splattered against the tree.

Kim jerked up to her feet, case in hand. Her eyes widened as she looked at the wet splotch on the tree.

“What the heck?!” She held the suitcase up to shield herself from more bullets, and they certainly started coming.

“ZIP! ZIP! ZIP!” Paintballs rained on the two girls as they ran for cover in the bushes. Luckily, they managed to avoid getting hit.

“She got away!”

“Darn, too bad.”

A familiar pair of voices that sounded very similar rang across the trail. Sylvia’s eyes widened.

“Marley?!” She hopped up out of the bushes, surprised. “Marley! Over here! Why are you shooting at us?!”

Marley whirled around, surprised. She had a rifle in hand, but lowered it, studying Sylvia carefully. “Sylvia? I wasn’t shooting at you, I was shooting at Kim.”

“Well, Kim and I are teamed up together,” Sylvia said. She lightly kicked Kim in the side to get her to stand. “Come on, Kim, you can come out now. It’s just Marley!”

Kim remained safe in the bushes. If Marley was here, Carly couldn’t be far off. And as long as the other half of the duo was hidden, coming out of hiding was anything but safe.

Marley had a tense expression on her face.

“Sorry, Sylvia, but maybe it’s for the best she stays hidden,” she said honestly. “Right now, Carly and I are looking for people to shoot at.”

Sylvia’s jaw dropped.

“But… you’re not going to shoot me, right?” She asked hopefully. “Come on, Marley! Let’s team up together! All four of us can get ahead!”

Marley grimaced. “…We’re going to team up with Dani,” she answered. “Sorry.”

Sylvia didn’t see a problem with that. “Dani can come, too!” She urged. “We can all get through this together!”

Marley gave it a lot of thought. She really wanted to agree with that, but…

“Too many people together is a liability,” she replied. “I don’t think that would be smart. As for my sister I think it’s for the best if she stays hidden right now.”

Sylvia looked disappointed. So disappointed, Marley took pity on her.

“…Okay you two can go,” she said, waving her gun down the trail. “It’s fine. Kim too. We can just have a peace accord or whatever it’s called.”

Sylvia blinked. “Really?”

“Yeah, now go.” Marley still looked like she wanted to team up with her mother, but her loyalty was to Carly first. “Until we find Dani, anyway. Maybe Dani will have a different plan.”

“Carly’s in the tree, isn’t she?” Kim stood up from under the bush, brushing twigs and leaves off.

Startled, Marley turned her gun on her and backed up. “Why do you say that?” She asked, narrowing her eyes.

“It’s what I would do,” Kim replied, glancing up at the tree branches. They were about eight feet above the ground. “Carly stays up safe in that tree, while you patrol looking for people to shoot. It’s a good strategy, but it limits your mobility. You’ll keep Carly safe, but you’ll never find Dani like that.”

“Dani can take care of herself,” Carly’s muffled voice came from above. “I have faith in her.”

“Well, we can find her for you,” Kim offered. “And send her this way. That way, you two can team up together without you compromising your defense.”

“Oh, hey, yeah! That’s a great idea!” Sylvia nodded in agreement.

Marley’s eyes widened as she considered that offer.

“You’d really do that?” Carly asked, popping her head down from the branch.

Kim shrugged. “Sure. I mean, you’re letting us go, it’s the least we can do.” Plus, if they did end up crossing paths with Dani, Kim wanted to make sure she had a “Get Out of Jail Free” card in her pocket. Dani seemed like she was taking this game pretty seriously.

“…Thanks,” Carly said, cracking a sweet smile. Marley nodded as well, her face softening.

Kim and Sylvia moved to leave, only for Kim to stop and look back at the twins.

“…One thing, though. I still think we should all team up together against Augmented Synthetic Humanoid Assassin, just in case. Believe me, I know her, and as much as I like her, she can be really dangerous.”

“And you can take it from Kim, she’s got the only confirmed kill in this game,” Sylvia said, nodding in affirmation.

Kim shot her a look.

“…Right, well, whatever Dani says,” Marley replied, waving them off.

Kim and Sylvia didn’t let out a sigh of relief until they were well out of the range of Marley’s rifle.

“…Good thing I didn’t need to waste any water balloons on her,” Kim said, looking back the way they came as they broke out into a clearing. “Probably wouldn’t even do any good, either.”

“Having Marley as a sentry post is a pretty good strategy,” Sylvia had to admit. “But up a tree like that, Carly’s kind of a sitting duck.”

Kim nodded. “Well, in the meantime, let’s take a look at what we got here,” she said, setting down the case she’d managed to make off with in the heat of the moment. She cracked it open and took a look, bracing herself for disappointment.

What she saw made her eyes widen in surprise instead.

“Oh wow!” Sylvia chirped. “There must be, like, five clips of ammo in there! And a bandolier to put it on, too!”

Kim nodded. “But no gun, unfortunately,” she said, stepping aside and letting Sylvia have her pick of their prize. “I guess for right now, we’re still stuck with yours. And it’s just a handgun.”

It couldn’t compare to Marley’s rifle. Or the various other guns that had no-doubt been discovered already.

Hopefully they could find some better weapons soon.

“Hopefully we can find some better weapons soon,” Rose muttered. “That knife isn’t going to do much if whoever took out Amelia comes looking for us.”

“But… didn’t you say you left Amelia on the brink of orgasm?” Ella asked, adjusting her hip holster for the millionth time. Having a knife at her waist just didn’t feel right. “Maybe the only reason they were able to get her was because she was already weakened.”

Rose considered that. “Still… it could have been Augmented Synthetic Humanoid Assassin,” she pointed out. At the moment, Rose’s goal, besides finding weapons, was to identify where Augmented Synthetic Humanoid Assassin was, and then stay as far away from her as possible.

As long as that woman was in the game, Rose knew her chances of winning were basically zero. She had to hope someone else, or multiple someones, could eliminate her first.

Which wasn’t her style. She was the kind of woman who wanted to solve problems herself, not hope that someone else would be able to!

“What if… what if we can’t find any other weapons?” Ella asked worriedly, her fingers trailing against her knife. “What if…”

“It’ll be fine,” Rose assured her. “Worst comes to worst, we’ll just make a run for it!”

Ella looked at her and frowned. “You mean you’re going to ditch me? Again, I’m not an idiot.”

Rose was taller than her, and could probably run faster. Ella suspected that was one of the reasons the blonde wanted to join forces with her in the first place.

Rose decided to change the subject instead of answering Ella’s question.

“So Ella, if we’re going to watch out for Augmented Synthetic Humanoid Assassin, is there anything you can tell me about her?”

“…Tell you?”

Ella wasn’t sure what help she could be.

Rose shrugged. “You are her roommate, right?” She pointed out. “Do you know any secrets? Something that could help us get an edge?”

Ella frantically shook her head. “No, no way! Nothing like that!” She replied. “I-I… I try to stay out of her way, mostly.”

Rose nodded. “Well… that’s what we’re going to do today, as well,” she tittered. “Come on, let’s go! I have a feeling, there are some weapons in this direction!” She turned towards the edge of an open clearing.

“Run! Outta the way!”

Suddenly, a woman in black slammed into her, and they both fell to the ground.

“What?! Hey, get off!” Rose couldn’t risk being aroused again. She pushed off whoever it was that had tackled her and scrambled to her feet. She heard the distinct jangle of metal bracelets, and knew in an instant who it was.

“Gina?”

“H-hey…” Gina staggered to her feet, panting for breath. Her face was flushed with desire and the back of her ragged shirt was covered in aphrodisiacs. She’d taken a couple of shots.

“What… what happened?” Ella stammered, gulping.

“Ah, nothing, just a little spat, that’s all!” Gina quickly wiped her pants down. “Gotta go! Little tip? Don’t start fights you can’t finish, especially when it comes to touching someone’s ass!”

A paintball splattered against the rock Gina had just been standing in front of a second ago as she shot down the path, laughing like a maniac.

“Gina!” Dani roared, emerging from the brush. “Get back here! I’ll end you, you little gremlin!” Her own clothes had aphrodisiacs smeared over them, but more importantly, she was brandishing a shiny rifle.

Rose and Ella couldn’t jump out of her way fast enough!